Captain by accident, leader by nature

IT TOOK an accident of circumstance for TJ Ryan to become captain of the Limerick hurlers, the first player from Garryspillane to ever achieve that honour.

County champions Patrickswell had the captaincy rights, but by the end of the current League campaign, didn't have any regular on the starting 15. No-one familiar with the Limerick hurling scene over the past decade was surprised then when, despite the presence of a number of other worthies, the choice became full-back TJ Ryan, leader by nature and by design. No-one, that is, but the man himself.

"I didn't expect it, the way things were in Limerick, but this is just the way it worked out," he said. "It won't change anything for me; when you've been around as long as I have, you get a bit of experience along the way, tend to lead anyway, so the captaincy doesn't make much difference really, in that sense.

"I'm delighted with it, but it would be a lot better if I have something to show for it at the end of the year, it would be nice to be captain of a winning team, great to bring some silverware home to Garryspillane. We live in hope."

The journey for TJ and Limerick towards that silverware begins on Sunday against Cork. It's a journey he's made many times before, went all the way to Croke Park in September on a couple of occasions.

Could have won both, certainly should have won one, but were beaten on each occasion, 1994 and '96, two memories that will haunt Limerick hurling fans forever, one defeat more heart-breaking than the other. A number of barren years since, a lot of people would have quit by now. Is it worth it?

TJ Ryan has no doubt. He's 30, married, a seven-year-old hurler growing up at home in Garryspillane, is fully occupied in his job as sales manager for Cube Printing in Limerick, but all this talk of shortened inter-county careers, of the demands involved, don't impress him a whit.

"Once you look after yourself, there's no problem, and there are still a lot of guys out there who would give their right arm to play at inter-county. You look out on Croke Park... I'd give anything to be back there for a big game again, the stands full, that atmosphere. That's what it's all about, getting to Croke Park, that's what you dream of all your life, and if we could manage that this year, it would be fantastic."

Brian Begley, Conor Fitzgerald, Mark Keane, Stephen Lucey, Mike O'Brien, and Mark O'Riordan six names that would figure on any Limerick senior hurling panel. Dual players, none will be togged out on Sunday, all will be involved in some capacity or another when Limerick play Waterford in the Munster football semi-final in a couple of weeks.

Given all the needless and various controversies involving Limerick hurlers for the past few years, and the furore that surrounded the decision of those six players to opt for football, TJ is reluctant to comment.

He does however, accept one reality. "Without a doubt, no-one can argue with the fact that if the six boys had committed themselves to hurling, it would have been of enormous benefit to Limerick, but we've been through all that, the long and the short of it now is that people have to recognise that the decision has been made, and they won't be playing with us. It was a difficult time, a difficult question for the lads themselves, but I think people are beginning to realise that the two can't be done anymore, it's just become so demanding.

"I have no doubt that the lads would all still love to play hurling, but I don't think they'll be back with us this year, it doesn't look like it for the moment anyway. Maybe next year might be different; I'm certain that if they decide to concentrate on hurling there will be no problem."

In the meantime, Limerick are just getting on with the job with the players they have. "Cork will be tough. All-Ireland finalists last year, they're going to be very, very difficult to beat. At the same time, they've lost Setanta, and Alan Browne, and those kind of guys aren't replaced overnight. That has to be of benefit to us.

"We've done reasonably well against them in recent years, but we're going to have to really be on our game, all of us, to get a win. I think we're heading in the right direction, maybe we could do with a little bit more time, but this is it, we've got to do it now."